TYPE: Thai Reminiscence
DISH: Spicy Thai Beef Salad with Mizuna
The summer going into my junior year of high school, I spent 6 weeks traveling around Thailand. Other Asian countries offered the same sort of immersion program I was on, so I really couldn’t tell you why I chose Thailand in particular. All I remember is that my dad didn’t want me to go, which turned my idea into an obsession.
That was 8 years ago, and I have been plotting my return ever since. Until I can carve out a chunk of time to rival my first excursion, I’ve been channeling my interest in Thai culture into the constant cooking and eating (well, mainly eating) of the country’s food. I took my first cooking class ever in Chiangmai, and when I returned home, I continued to practice my Pad Thai, Spring Rolls, Chicken with Cashew Nut, Green Curry, and Papaya Salad with the little twine-bound cookbook we had been given at the end of the course.
The few dishes not included in its pages were some of my favorites: spicy meat salads like Laab and Yam Neua from Isaan, where I spent two weeks living with a family in a small rice-farming village. Luckily, the flavors could live on in my mind through the many sub-par Thai take-out joints on St. Marks place. But recently, thanks to a contest for your Best Beef Salad on Food52, I began experimenting with a bastardized version of my two favorites—Green Papaya Salad (Som Tum) and Spicy Beef Salad (Yam Neua). The two are usually eaten in tandem at the table, alternated between mouthfuls of sticky rice, and are dressed with the classic Thai combination of lime juice, fish sauce, sugar, and just as much chili as you can stand.
Since I’m not Thai, and by no means an arbiter of knowledge on Thai cuisine beyond my short summer there, I thought I’d spice things up a bit (well, enough for my American taste buds) by adding the cherry tomatoes and roasted peanuts from Som Tum to my beef salad, creating one refreshing, sweet, salty, crunchy, carnivorous delight.
All told, my beef salad may not have been traditional. But the flavors did bring back all the memories from my first solo adventure in a new country in one delicious mouthful.
From my kitchen, dreaming of Thailand, to yours,
Phoebe, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK
P.S. My Beef Salad only got chosen as an Editor’s Pick, but Cara’s Blueberry Tart is a finalist for Food52’s Best Fruit Tart Contest!! Please please please check out the site (it is pretty awesome) and vote for her dish!
**Recipes**
Spicy Thai Beef Salad with Mizuna
Makes 2 servings
Both Som Tum and Yam Neua are usually set atop a small bed of undressed shredded lettuce, which acts more like a garnish than a base. I chose to use mizuna, which is normally found in Japanese cooking, to give the beef an extra peppery bite.
Ingredients
For the Salad:
3/4 lb flank steak
¼ cup fresh mint leaves, coarsely chopped
¼ cup cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped
1 shallot, sliced very thin
½ pint cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped unsalted roasted peanuts
3-5oz mizuna (or baby arugula)
For the Dressing:
2 cloves garlic, pushed through a press
2-3 tsp siracha (or you can use minced Thai chilies)
½ tsp chili powder
2 tbsp sugar
5 tbsp fish sauce
3 limes, juiced
½ tbsp sesame oil
Trim off any excess fat from the steak and season it well with salt and pepper on both sides. Brush a ridged indoor grill pan with oil and set it over a high flame. When the pan is hot, set the steak down diagonally on the pan and cook until dark marks have formed. On the same side, shift the steak so it lies on the opposite diagonal of the pan. This will create a beautiful cross-hatch. Repeat on the other side, and cook until medium rare (when the meat has firmed up, but still has some give when prodded). Cover the steak with tin foil and set aside to rest for at least 15 minutes.
In the meantime, combine the fresh herbs, shallot, tomatoes, and half of the peanuts in a medium mixing bowl.
In a small bowl, combine all ingredients for the dressing.
One the meat has properly rested, transfer it to a cutting board and slice it into thin strips on a diagonal (your knife should be positioned at a 45 degree angle).
Toss the meat together with the salad mixture and the dressing.
To serve, create a large bed of mizuna on two plates, and top each with a large helping of beef salad (making sure to keep some of the liquid). Garnish with the remaining peanuts and a few leaves of cilantro.
